NOTICE of ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC Circustheater, Circusstraat 4, 2586 CW the Hague, the Netherlands Tuesday May 19, 2015 at 10:00 (Dutch Time)

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

NOTICE of ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC Circustheater, Circusstraat 4, 2586 CW the Hague, the Netherlands Tuesday May 19, 2015 at 10:00 (Dutch Time) SEE INSIDE FOR NEWS OF SHAREHOLDER PRESENTATION IN LONDON NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC Circustheater, Circusstraat 4, 2586 CW The Hague, The Netherlands Tuesday May 19, 2015 at 10:00 (Dutch time) THIS DOCUMENT IS IMPORTANT AND REQUIRES YOUR IMMEDIATE ATTENTION If you are in any doubt about what action to take, you should seek your own personal advice immediately from a financial adviser authorised under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 if you are in the UK or, if you are not, from another appropriately authorised financial adviser. If you have sold or transferred all your shares in Royal Dutch Shell plc (the “Company”), please give this letter and the accompanying documents to the stockbroker or other agent through whom the sale or transfer was effected for transmission to the purchaser. 109934_01_Front_Cover - inside_front.indd 1 26-03-15 15:30 03 10 CONTENTS CHAIRMAN’S LETTER SHAREHOLDER RESOLUTION – SUPPORTING STATEMENT 04 NOTICE OF ANNUAL 11 GENERAL MEETING SHAREHOLDER NOTES 06 14 DIRECTORS’ BIOGRAPHIES ATTENDANCE ARRANGEMENTS 08 EXPLANATORY NOTES 15 ON RESOLUTIONS SHAREHOLDER PRESENTATION, LONDON AVAILABILITY OF DOCUMENTS The Company’s Annual Report and Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2014, and the Strategic Report 2014 can be found at www.shell.com/annualreport. The 2015 Notice of Annual General Meeting can be found at www.shell.com/agm. If you would like to obtain, free of charge, a paper copy of any of these documents, please contact one of the following: United Kingdom USA +44 (0)121 415 7073 +1 888 301 0504 E-COMMUNICATION If you are a registered shareholder and hold your shares in your own name, or you hold your shares in the Royal Dutch Shell Corporate Nominee, you can choose to view shareholder communications (for example, the Company’s Annual Report or Strategic Report) by means of our website instead of receiving paper communications. If you opt for website communications and provide us with your email address by registering online at www.shareview.co.uk/clients/shell, you will be sent a notification by email whenever such shareholder communications are added to our website, or in the absence of an email address you will be sent a notification by post. If you choose to view shareholder communications by means of our website, you may change your mind at any time or obtain, free of charge, a copy of the communication in paper form, by contacting our SPECIFICATIONS Registrar at the address below. The paper used for this document is Satimat Green, an FSC®-certified paper, Equiniti produced from 60% FSC-certified Aspect House recycled fibre and 40% FSC-certified Spencer Road virgin fibre. All virgin fibres are ECF Lancing bleached, without using chlorine gas. West Sussex The inks used are vegetable oil based. BN99 6DA United Kingdom 0800 169 1679 (UK) +44 (0)121 415 7073 ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC Registered in England and Wales, Headquarters: Carel van Bylandtlaan 30, Company number 4366849 2596 HR The Hague, The Netherlands Designed by Conran Design Group Registered office: Shell Centre, London, Registered with the Dutch Trade Register Printed by Tuijtel under ISO 14001 SE1 7NA, United Kingdom under number 34179503 109934_01_Front_Cover - inside_front.indd 2 26-03-15 15:30 CHAIRMAN’S LETTER 03 NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2015 CHAIRMAN’S LETTER SHAREHOLDER PRESENTATION, LONDON A presentation has been arranged for shareholders at 11:00 (UK time) on Thursday May 21, 2015 – two days after the AGM – at Central Hall Westminster, Storey’s Gate, Westminster, London, SW1H 9NH, United Kingdom. The presentation is not part of the AGM; it is a separate meeting and, while all shareholders are invited to attend, it may be of particular interest to UK resident shareholders who wish to hear about the Company’s progress and ask questions in person. The Chairman will be present, along with Ben van Beurden, Chief Executive Officer and Simon Henry, Chief Financial Officer. Jorma Ollila Chairman Further details can be found on page 15. Dear Shareholder, I am pleased to invite you to the Company’s Annual I believe that each of the reappointments proposed AGM WEBCAST General Meeting (AGM) which will be held at the in Resolutions 3 to 13 are in the best interests of Shareholders unable to attend the AGM Circustheater, Circusstraat 4, 2586 CW The Hague, the Company. The biographical details of each in person can watch via our webcast which The Netherlands on Tuesday May 19, 2015. Director are given on pages 6 and 7 and I hope will be broadcast live at 10:00 (Dutch time), you will vote in support of these resolutions. 09:00 (UK time) on the day of the AGM. I will be standing down as a Director of the Shareholders who wish to follow the webcast Company at the close of business of this AGM and QUESTION AND ANSWER SESSION should log on to www.shell.com/agm/ I am delighted that Charles O. Holliday, currently The AGM provides an opportunity for you to ask webcast and follow the online instructions. a Non-executive Director, has agreed to succeed questions about the business set out in this Notice me as Chairman. Chad has a distinguished track and to raise other matters about the business of Further details can be found on page 12. record as an international businessman and his the Company. As Chairman of the AGM, I will appointment has the unanimous support endeavour to ensure that discussions are kept of the Board. relevant and that as many shareholders as possible have the opportunity to speak. BUSINESS OF THE AGM The business to be conducted at the AGM is set VOTING out in this Notice with explanatory notes concerning All resolutions for consideration at the AGM will each of the resolutions. The business is mainly be decided on a poll rather than a show of hands. of a routine nature for a listed company and your This means that a shareholder has one vote for Board recommends that you vote in favour of all the every share held. If you are not able to come to resolutions. This includes a shareholder resolution the AGM in person, I would urge you to vote by requesting additional disclosures to be made by the following the guidance notes on pages 11 to 13. Company in relation to risks associated with climate change, received pursuant to the UK Companies Yours faithfully, Act 2006 (Resolution 21). Jorma Ollila The AGM will be conducted in English although Chairman there will be Dutch translation facilities available. March 17, 2015 DIRECTORS In line with the UK Corporate Governance Code, all Directors will retire at the AGM and, subject to the Articles of Association and their wish to continue as a Director of the Company, seek reappointment by shareholders. As mentioned above, I will be standing down from the Board having served for nine years and will not be seeking reappointment. 109934_02_Chair_letter - notes.indd 3 26-03-15 15:32 04 NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2015 NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING Notice is hereby given that the Annual General Meeting (the “AGM“) of Royal Dutch Shell (ii) to holders of other equity securities, as required plc (the “Company”) will be held at the Circustheater, Circusstraat 4, 2586 CW The Hague, by the rights of those securities or, as the Board The Netherlands at 10:00 (Dutch time) on Tuesday May 19, 2015, for the purposes of otherwise considers necessary, considering the following business: and so that the Board may impose any limits or To consider and, if thought fit, to pass the following RESOLUTION 12 restrictions and make any arrangements which it resolutions, with those numbered 1 to 16 and 19 That Patricia A. Woertz be reappointed considers necessary or appropriate to deal with and 20 being proposed as ordinary resolutions as a Director of the Company. treasury shares, fractional entitlements, record and those numbered 17, 18 and 21 being dates, or legal or practical problems arising in proposed as special resolutions. RESOLUTION 13 any overseas territory, the requirements of any That Gerrit Zalm be reappointed regulatory body or stock exchange or any other For ordinary resolutions to be passed, more than half as a Director of the Company. matter whatsoever; and of the votes cast must be in favour of the resolution, while in the case of special resolutions at least RESOLUTION 14 (B) three-quarters of the votes cast must be in favour. That PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP be reappointed in the case of the authority granted under Resolution as Auditor of the Company to hold office until the 17 and/or in the case of any sale of treasury RESOLUTION 1 conclusion of the next AGM of the Company. shares for cash, to the allotment (otherwise than That the Company’s annual accounts for the financial under paragraph (A) above) of equity securities year ended December 31, 2014, together with the RESOLUTION 15 or sale of treasury shares up to a nominal amount Directors’ report and the Auditor’s report on those That the Board be authorised to determine of €22 million, accounts, be received. the remuneration of the Auditor for 2015. such power to apply until the earlier of the close RESOLUTION 2 RESOLUTION 16 of business on August 19, 2016, and the end of That the Directors’ Remuneration Report, excluding That the Board be generally and unconditionally the next AGM of the Company but, in each case, the Directors’ Remuneration Policy set out on pages authorised, in substitution for all subsisting during this period the Company may make offers 91 to 98 of the Directors’ Remuneration Report, for authorities, to allot shares in the Company, and and enter into agreements which would, or might, the year ended December 31, 2014, be approved.
Recommended publications
  • AT&T Inc.; Rule 14A-8 No-Action Letter
    Wayne Wirtz AT&T Inc. T: 214.757.3344 Vice President - Associate One AT&T Plaza F: 214.486.8100 General Counsel and 208 S. Akard Street [email protected] Assistant Secretary Dallas, TX 75202 January 15, 2021 By email to [email protected] U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Division of Corporation Finance Office of Chief Counsel 100 F Street, NE Washington, DC 20549 Re: AT&T Inc. – Stockholder Proposal Submitted by As You Sow Ladies and Gentlemen: In a letter dated December 15, 2020, AT&T Inc. (“AT&T” or the “Company”) notified the Division of Corporation Finance of its intention to exclude a stockholder proposal submitted by As You Sow (the “Proposal”) on behalf of the Putney School Inc. Endowment Inv Mgr, Handlery Hotels Inc., and the John B & Linda C Mason Comm Prop Trust (the “Proponents”) from AT&T’s proxy materials for its 2021 Annual Meeting of Stockholders. As You Sow has withdrawn the Proposal on behalf of the Proponents. As a result, the Company hereby withdraws the December 15, 2020, no-action request. If I can be of any further assistance in this matter, please do not hesitate to contact me at (214) 757-3344. Sincerely, Wayne Wirtz cc: Gail Follansbee, As You Sow 2150 Kittredge Street, Suite 450 www.asyousow.org AS YOU SOW Berkeley, CA 94708 BUILDING A SAFE JUST AND SUSTAINABLE WORLD SINCl J<IQ~ January 13, 2021 Charlene F. Lake Chief Sustainability Officer and SVP-Corporate Responsibility AT&T 208 S. Akard 2505 Dallas, TX 75202 Re: Withdrawal of 2021 Shareholder Proposal Dear Charlene, As You Sow, on behalf of itself and all filers for whom it has been authorized to act, appreciates the constructive dialogue on its shareholder proposal related to incongruous political giving and women's reproductive health.
    [Show full text]
  • Amend Bylaws California Shareholder Resolution
    Amend Bylaws California Shareholder Resolution abidingly,starlightRoland remains Bear institutional cost dialyzable: her andsills innocent.cross-buttock she revitalizing putters her extortioner and stickle leveeing carnally. too Ambrose prodigally? peise Inevitable her extension and A plausible order double the corporation may route the shareholders entitled to. Can seller refuse and make repairs? The Fundamental Rights of his Shareholder UC Davis Law. A committee is also restricted from amending or repealing any resolution of beloved board. Sba loan resolution of grey of directors El desarrollador. Any field by the Corporation to a sense under Section 20b of the California Corporations Code for consent to heel a meeting of. Templates for bylaws operating agreements and meeting minutes can simplify. While the SEC is poised to require future proposals with new rules. 2016 MLS BY-LAWS Tahoe Sierra Board of Realtors. After all matters have been discussed and major relevant resolutions have been voted. The California Public Employees' Retirement System CalPERS has someone it. Investor Relations Bank of America Corporation. Sample Corporate Resolution for Signing Authority Diligent. Board of Directors of the Tahoe Sierra Board of Realtors shareholder. How to haste Your Corporate Articles of Incorporation. This proposal raises a very interesting question know the allocation of. This sample agreement template is likely perfect sample sentence how each outline how. The decision put climate change squarely into the mainstream of disclosure issues. This dictionary a sample resolution to be adopted by the fashion of Directors of a corporation. Corporate Resolution Library eMinutes. Existing bylaws may neither be amended or repealed by a committee nor serve a.
    [Show full text]
  • Rule 14A-8 No-Action Letter
    March 23, 2018 Jane Whitt Sellers McGuireWoods LLP [email protected] Re: PNM Resources, Inc. Incoming letter dated January 22, 2018 Dear Ms. Sellers: This letter is in response to your correspondence dated January 22, 2018 concerning the shareholder proposal (the “Proposal”) submitted to PNM Resources, Inc. (the “Company”) by Robert Andrew Davis (the “Proponent”) for inclusion in the Company’s proxy materials for its upcoming annual meeting of security holders. We also have received correspondence from the Proponent dated February 13, 2018. Copies of all of the correspondence on which this response is based will be made available on our website at http://www.sec.gov/divisions/corpfin/cf-noaction/14a-8.shtml. For your reference, a brief discussion of the Division’s informal procedures regarding shareholder proposals is also available at the same website address. Sincerely, Matt S. McNair Senior Special Counsel Enclosure cc: Robert Andrew Davis *** *** FISMA & OMB Memorandum M-07-16 March 23, 2018 Response of the Office of Chief Counsel Division of Corporation Finance Re: PNM Resources, Inc. Incoming letter dated January 22, 2018 The Proposal requests that the board adopt a policy, and amend the bylaws as necessary, to require the chair of the board of directors to be an independent member of the board whenever possible. We are unable to concur in your view that the Company may exclude the Proposal or portions of the supporting statement under rule 14a-8(i)(3). We are unable to conclude that the Proposal, taken as a whole, is so vague or indefinite that it is rendered materially misleading.
    [Show full text]
  • Shareholder Activism: Standing up for Sustainability?
    Shareholder activism: Standing up for sustainability? REPORT Shareholder activism: Standing up for sustainability? - 1 CONTENTS PREFACE........................................................................................................................4 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.................................................................................................6 SHAREHOLDER ACTIVISM CASES...............................................................................8 PASSIVE SHAREHOLDING AND THE ‘BATTLE FOR THE SOUL OF CAPITALISM’ ....9 SHAREHOLDER ACTIVISM IN NUMBERS..................................................................10 SHAREHOLDER ACTIVISM FOR SUSTAINABILITY.....................................................11 MATERIALITY AND REPUTATION..............................................................................13 PUBLIC POLICY TRENDS AND SHAREHOLDER RIGHTS..........................................16 THE FUTURE OF SHAREHOLDER ACTIVISM.............................................................19 ANNEX I: ACTIVIST INVESTORS IN SELECTED COUNTRIES.....................................21 ANNEX II: PROXY COMPANIES...................................................................................21 ANNEX III: OVERVIEW OF ACTORS IN ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL AND GOVERNANCE (ESG) SHAREHOLDER ACTIVISM......................................................22 REFERENCES................................................................................................................24 SOURCES.....................................................................................................................27
    [Show full text]
  • Notice of Meeting of 2021 Annual General Meeting
    THIS DOCUMENT IS IMPORTANT AND REQUIRES YOUR IMMEDIATE ATTENTION If you are in any doubt about what action to take, you should seek your own personal advice immediately from a financial adviser authorised under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 if you are in the UK or, if you are not, from another appropriately authorised financial adviser. If you have sold or transferred all your shares in Royal Dutch Shell plc (the “Company”), please give this document and the accompanying documents to the stockbroker or other agent through whom the sale or transfer was effected for transmission to the purchaser. NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING CAREL VAN BYLANDTLAAN 16, 2596 HR THE HAGUE, THE NETHERLANDS TUESDAY MAY 18, 2021 AT 10:00 (DUTCH TIME) CONTENTS 3 8 SHAREHOLDER CHAIR’S LETTER EXPLANATORY NOTES ON PRESENTATION, LONDON RESOLUTIONS In prior years we have held a Shareholder Presentation in London, two days after 4 the AGM. For the reasons outlined in the NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL Chair's letter, this year we have again MEETING 10 deemed it prudent to cancel this event. DIRECTORS’ BIOGRAPHIES We recognise that some of our 6 SHAREHOLDER RESOLUTION 19 shareholders value this opportunity to SHAREHOLDER NOTES engage in person with the Board, and like AND SUPPORTING STATEMENT us, they may consider this news most unwelcome. However, we must consider 7 22 safety first, and the changes we are DIRECTORS’ RESPONSE ATTENDANCE ARRANGEMENTS making in these continuing exceptional TO SHAREHOLDER RESOLUTION circumstances have been made to protect our people and those that may have attended this event.
    [Show full text]
  • Notice of Meeting of 2017 Annual General Meeting
    NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC Circustheater, Circusstraat 4, 2586 CW The Hague, The Netherlands Tuesday May 23, 2017 at 10:00 (Dutch time) THIS DOCUMENT IS IMPORTANT AND REQUIRES YOUR IMMEDIATE ATTENTION If you are in any doubt about what action to take, you should seek your own personal advice immediately from a financial adviser authorised under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 if you are in the UK or, if you are not, from another appropriately authorised financial adviser. If you have sold or transferred all your shares in Royal Dutch Shell plc (the “Company”), please give this document and the accompanying documents to the stockbroker or other agent through whom the sale or transfer was effected for transmission to the purchaser. SEE INSIDE FOR INFORMATION ABOUT THE SHAREHOLDER PRESENTATION IN LONDON CONTENTS 03 11 CHAIR’S LETTER DIRECTORS’ BIOGRAPHIES 04 15 NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING SHAREHOLDER NOTES 06 18 SHAREHOLDER RESOLUTION ATTENDANCE ARRANGEMENTS AND SUPPORTING STATEMENT 19 07 SHAREHOLDER PRESENTATION, LONDON DIRECTORS’ RESPONSE TO SHAREHOLDER RESOLUTION 09 EXPLANATORY NOTES ON RESOLUTIONS AVAILABILITY OF DOCUMENTS The Company’s Annual Report and Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2016 can be found at www.shell.com/annualreport. The 2017 Notice of Annual General Meeting can be found at www.shell.com/agm. If you would like to obtain, free of charge, a paper copy of any of these documents, please contact one of the following: United Kingdom +44 (0)121 415 7073 USA +1 888 301 0504 SPECIFICATIONS E-COMMUNICATION The paper used for this document is If you are a registered shareholder and hold your shares in your own name, or you hold your shares in the Royal Dutch Shell Corporate Satimat Green, an FSC®-certified paper, Nominee, you can choose to view shareholder communications (for example, the Company’s Annual Report) by means of our website produced from 60% FSC-certified recycled instead of receiving paper communications.
    [Show full text]
  • Community Organizing and Shareholder Activity
    COMMUNITY ORGANIZING AND SHAREHOLDER ACTIVITY Stephen Viederman 135 East 83rd Street, Suite 15A New York, New York 10028 212-639 9497 [email protected] Having retired as President of the Jessie Smith Noyes Foundation in 2000, Stephen Viederman interests are focused on the limits of corporate social responsibility, sustainability, economic and social justice, and new directions in fiduciary responsibility. Community Organizing and Shareholder Activity (see Note 1) Abstract The power of shareholders, especially institutional investors, through engagement with corporate management, shareholder resolutions and proxy voting, can be an effective instrument for assisting communities in their efforts to change corporate behavior that negatively impacts upon their quality of life. This essay chronicles one ‘successful’ effort on the part of a philanthropic foundation, the Jessie Smith Noyes Foundation, and one of its grantees, the SouthWest Organizing Project, to bring Intel to the table with the community and to share information with them. Intel; New Mexico, USA; institutional investors; community organizing; shareholder resolutions; proxy voting; mission-related investing Traditionally community organizing and shareholder activities have not been linked. Shareholders are usually distant owners, unaware of community concerns. Often they are institutional investors—pension funds, higher educational institutions, and philanthropic foundations—that have dissociated the management of their endowments from their social purposes. (Tasch and Viederman, 1995) When pension funds become involved in shareholder activity they usually focus corporate governance. Religious institutions are often an exception. Religious investors have a long history of using their power as shareholders on important social issues, going back at least 30 years. However, their concerns have been on such matters as apartheid in South Africa, improved environmental reporting, genetically modified organisms, and diversity in the workplace.
    [Show full text]
  • 2020 Proxy Resolutions and Voting Guide © ICCR 2020 Proxy Resolutions and Voting Guide
    1 2020 Proxy Resolutions and Voting Guide © ICCR 2020 Proxy Resolutions and Voting Guide ICCR Member Resolutions by Company Table of Contents Company Resolution Page Number Alphabetical Resolutions Key 2 3M Company Consider Pay Grades When Setting CEO Compensation 69 Abbott Laboratories Lobbying Expenditures Disclosure - Pharma 201 2020 Executive Summary 10 AbbVie Exec. Comp. and Drug Pricing Risks-Feasibility Report 130 2020 Resolutions by Topic 18 Lobbying Expenditures Disclosure - Pharma 201 Climate Change 18 Advance Auto Parts, Inc. Human Capital Management Disclosure 189 Corporate Governance 51 AES Corporation Lobbying Expend. Disclosure - Climate Change Withdrawn 200 Diversity and Inclusiveness 73 Alphabet, Inc. Child Sexual Exploitation Online 184 Environmental Health and Evaluate Company Whistleblower Policies and Practices 172 Sustainability 99 Exec. Pay-Incorporate Diversity & Sustainability Metrics 96 Food 115 Gender and Racial Pay Gap 75 Health 125 . Give Each Share an Equal Vote 55 Human Rights/Worker Rights 139 Human Rights Risk Committee of the Board 163 Lobbying/Political Contributions 193 Report on Government Content Removal Requests 170 Water 212 Altria Group, Inc. Discouraging Nicotine Use Among Youth 138 A Guide to Filing Resolutions 221 Lobbying Expenditures Disclosure 202 Resolution Leads and Co-Filers 224 Amazon.com, Inc Adopt a Human Rights Policy Challenged 143 Contact Details for Filers 239 Board Oversight of ESG Risks of 3rd-Party Sellers Challenged 114 Customer Due Diligence Challenged 173 Exec. Pay-Incorporate Diversity & February 21, 2020 Sustainability Metrics Challenged 95 Hate Speech Products 167 Layout: Kathryn Hillert Brewer; Cover: Molly Conley. Human Rights Impact Assessment Challenged 147 Images: Header: Phongphan/Shutterstock; p. 10: achinthamb/shutterstock.com; p.
    [Show full text]
  • Shareholders Spur Action on Climate Change: Company Commitments from the 2014 & 2015 Proxy Seasons
    Shareholders Spur Action On Climate Change: Company Commitments From the 2014 & 2015 Proxy Seasons October 2015 Table Of Contents About Ceres and INCR 3 Foreword Ceres is a nonprofit organization mobilizing business and investor leadership on climate change, water scarcity and other global 4 Executive Summary sustainability challenges. Ceres coordinates the Investor Network on Climate Risk, a network of over 115 institutional investors with 5 Methodology collective assets totaling more than $13 trillion. For more information, visit www.ceres.org or follow on Twitter @CeresNews and @INCRnews 6 Fossil Fuel Industry Risks The information contained in this report is directly reported by 10 Greenhouse Gas Emission Reductions investors and does not necessarily reflect the views of Ceres. 13 Sustainable Agriculture and Deforestation Acknowledgements We wish to thank all of the investors who added their commitments 17 Sustainability Reporting to the report. Additionally, we would like to thank our Ceres colleagues Nate Van Cleve and Julia Lennon, whose work on 21 Additional Climate-Related Commitments the data tables forms the backbone of this report. Disclaimer This publication has been prepared for general guidance and does not constitute legal, accounting or investment advice. Investors should not act upon the information contained in this publication without obtaining professional advice. No representation or warranty (express or implied) is given as to the accuracy or completeness of the information contained in this publication. The opinions expressed in this publication are those of Ceres and do not necessarily reflect the views of any of our donors, member organizations or advisors. Ceres does not endorse any of the organizations used as examples or referenced in the publication, or their products or services.
    [Show full text]
  • Shareholder Resolutions at Listed Public Companies in Major English-Speaking Countries: Comparative Arrangements1
    Shareholder resolutions at listed public companies in major English-speaking countries: comparative arrangements1 March 2014 Howard Pender and Josh Sheppard2 Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility (ACCR) 1 For additional international context Japanese arrangements are also described. 2 Howard is the Research Director at the ACCR. Josh undertook this work as an intern for the ACCR. Both Howard and Josh would like to thank Marie Brochetto for work she did on the appendix to an earlier paper she authored with Howard which assisted greatly with this paper. Howard would also like to thank Bankmecu for their support. 1 Disclaimer This document does not contain legal or financial advice. It has been prepared to assist Australian shareholders and interested observers to compare arrangements in Australia and other Anglophone jurisdictions regarding the lodgement of resolutions for consideration at general meetings of listed public companies. 1. Introduction This paper deals with arrangements for shareholder resolutions at general meetings of listed public companies. It looks at such arrangements in the following English speaking (Anglophone) jurisdictions: Australia; New Zealand; Papua New Guinea; the UK; Canada; the USA; and for some further international perspective – Japan. The shareholder’s relationship with a board is one of ‘principal’ and ‘agent’. Though the board has an overriding obligation to act in the interests of shareholders, the interests of the board will often diverge from those of shareholders. Shareholder resolutions are just one of the many ‘principal monitoring’ mechanisms commonly included in company law to check the extent to which the agent, in this case the board, can act in pursuit of its own interests rather than the interests of the principal, in this case the shareholders.
    [Show full text]
  • European M&A and Corporate Governance Hot Topics
    View as a Web Page December 2020 Quarterly Update December 2020 IN THIS ISSUE 1. The rise of sustainable activism across Europe 2. Reshaping issuers’ corporate governance 3. Europe, the leading sustainable bond market 2020 has not only been marked by the Covid­19 crisis; it has also been the year where sustainability became one of the most significant concepts in the corporate environment in Europe: from shareholder activism, becoming increasingly oriented towards social and green issues; to financing, with a booming sustainable bond market; or corporate governance, with new initiatives to strengthen compliance with environmental, social and good governance (“ESG”) objectives. Below is a short overview of some of the key aspects of the “sustainability (r) evolution”. Further detail on ESG­related regulatory and other developments can be found in our previous publications from earlier this year here and here. 1. The rise of sustainable activism across Europe • Recent examples of social/environmental shareholder activism campaign. Below are some recent examples of “sustainable” activism campaigns carried out in Europe. ◦ France. Although shareholder activism has become increasingly common in France, ESG­centered activism is a recent trend that is likely to widespread in the near future. ◾ Total: In 2020, a group of 11 investors filed a shareholder resolution focused on encouraging the company to adopt target­setting for emission reductions. The board agreed to submit the resolution to a shareholders’ meeting, on the basis that the request complied with legal requirements; however, the board publicly recommended the rejection of the resolution in particular due to the interference of the shareholders in the board’s scope of attribution that would result from the adoption of the resolution.
    [Show full text]
  • ISS Compliance Statement for Best Practice Principles for Providers Of
    Best Practice Principles for Providers of Shareholder Voting Research & Analysis ISS Compliance Statement 11 January 2021* Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (“ISS”) is pleased to submit the following Compliance Statement to the Best Practice Principles for Providers of Shareholder Voting Research & Analysis. The Best Practice Principles have been adopted to establish standards and provide guidance to service providers in the field of shareholder voting research and analysis. The three core Principles are: (i) Principle One, Service Quality - maintaining a high level of service quality, (ii) Principle 2, Conflicts-of-Interest Avoidance or Management - disclosure of policies that address potential or actual conflicts of interest, and (iii) Principle Three, Communications Policy - publication of policies for communication with issuers, shareholder proponents, other stakeholders, the media and the public. As the leading provider of corporate governance research, voting recommendations and voting services to institutional investors, ISS places primary importance on conducting our business in a transparent and responsible manner. Founded in 1985, the ISS group of companies empowers investors and companies to build for long- term and sustainable growth by providing high-quality data, analytics, and insight. Comprised of five discrete business lines, ISS is a leading provider of corporate governance and responsible investment solutions, market intelligence and fund services, and events and editorial content for institutional investors and corporations, globally. Clients rely on ISS’ services to help them make informed investment decisions. The shareholder voting research and analysis services that ISS offers to institutional investor clients are provided through its Governance Solutions business unit. This Compliance Statement addresses the shareholder voting research and analysis services provided to institutional investor clients by that business unit.
    [Show full text]